Gunnersbury Park is one of West London’s magnificent set of mansions and palaces near the Thames which, besides offering sylvan settings and pure air, constituted, in the absence of decent roads, a major communication artery to the Capital’s centre. Placed in the London Borough of Hounslow Gunnersbury Park was purchased for the nation from the Rothschild family and opened to the public by Neville Chamberlain. He was then minister of health and subsequently became Prime Minister laconically leading the United Kingdom into war against Germany

Many regard Neville Chamberlain as the worst prime minister this country has ever had but at least he helped to give Londoners one of their finest open spaces. As Chamberlain said at its inauguration in 1926 ‘I rejoice that the people have come into the possession of so magnificent and historical park.”

We first came across this lovely park several years ago when it was a little neglected. In the last few years a major restoration project has been completed and the area with its Italian gardens, its lakelets and its water fowl is utterly enchanting.

Regrettably there is a species of sub-humanoids lurking in the streets of London who last year set fire to the park’s fine cafeteria, completed in 2018 by the famed restoration architect Rodney Melville. At least we enjoyed our tea there in 2018. Luckily the historic horse carriages stored in the adjoining building were saved in the nick of time by volunteers who placed their lives at some risk in doing so. Now it is planned to rebuild the cafeteria by next year,

There are various architectural eras associated with Gunnersbury house (which was closed on this visit) . In 1760 the house became the residence of Princess Amelia, George I I’s favourite daughter. Her planned marriage to the future Frederick the Great of Prussia (the dedicatee of J. S. Bach’s ‘Musical Offering’) was called off and Amelia spent a spinster’s life, though one filled with parties and political intrigues, at Gunnersbury, where she also had a charming ‘gothick’ bath house built for her private delectation:

The grounds were landscaped by William Kent (architect at Kensington Palace and Horse guards parade) and were eventually bought by merchant, financier art connoisseur and benefactor Nathan Mayer Rothchild in 1835. It was during this period that the elegant orangerie was built and the lakes were landscaped.

I was absolutely entranced by the care that has been taken over the restoration of this fine estate and thought sadly about how Bagni di Lucca could do with some similar injection of funds from government sources to bring itself up to its former aspirations.